No Conductor. Only Chaos
Alistair Begg thoroughly enjoys one of the cultural treasures of Cleveland which is their orchestra.
As Alistair Begg puts it,
“ under the direction of the conductor, we have a whole group of world-class musicians who make wonderful music that many of us have come to enjoy.”
Begg suggests that you imagine going to the Cleveland Orchestra some Thursday or Friday evening only to discover that the orchestra had deposed Franz, the conductor, and every member had decided that they were going to play whatever they wanted to play and it was only what mattered to them was what they would play.
He continues with
“Well, I don’t think any of us would stay in there for more than a minute and a half.
It certainly wouldn’t be melodic. It would be absolutely chaotic”.
Begg emphasizes that the story line of the Bible says essentially the same thing that-
“God the creator is the conductor of His universe. Man has deposed the conductor.
Man then seeks to write his own melody line. Men and women seek to live their lives without reference to the score (God’s Holy Word) and without reference to the conductor.
And when that happens, results follow.”
What results exactly is he talking about?
In 2 Timothy 3:1-9, there is a list of ugly, ungodly behaviors that result when people live life without God, our Conductor! What do they look like?
- Love only themselves and their money.
- Boastful and proud, scoffing at God.
- Disobedient to parents and ungrateful;
- Unloving and Unforgiving;
- Slander others and have no self-control;
- Cruel and hate what is good;
- Betray friends, reckless, puffed up with pride;
- Love pleasure rather than God;
- Act religious but reject the power that could make them godly.
God in His great kindness and mercy has made a way for us to live our lives as a beautiful melody regardless of the trials and hardships we face.
God desires that we all live in harmony with Him and with others and He has made a way for us to have the power for us to do just that!
The very first step to being in harmony with God, our Conductor is Godly Repentance!
Before we get to Godly repentance though, let’s look at something that sometimes mimics it – that is Worldly sorrow.’
Worldly sorrow is a type of regret or sadness over sin that focuses on personal consequences, shame, or getting caught, rather than the offense against God. It is a self-centered emotion that fails to produce true repentance, ultimately leading to spiritual stagnation and death.
This truth is primarily found in 2 Corinthians 7:10
For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance results in spiritual death.
Now, how do you know if you are just feeling Worldly sorrow– the consequences that sin brings or if you have experienced Godly repentance? The following chart outlines the differences.
| Worldly sorrow hates the consequences of your sin. | Godly repentance hates the sin itself 2 Corinthians 7:9-11 |
| Worldly sorrow grieves how sin makes you feel. | Godly repentance grieves how your sin makes God and others feel Psalm 51:4 |
| Worldly sorrow hides sin until you get caught. | Godly repentance confesses sin before you get caught Proverbs 28:13 |
| Worldly sorrow makes no plans to change. |
Godly repentance actively and practically wages war against sin Acts 26:20 |
| Worldly sorrow leads you to commit the same sin over and over again. | Godly repentance leads you to sin less over time 1 John 3:9 |
But, maybe you think to yourself, I am a good person. That list of ugly, ungodly behaviors does NOT describe me! Perhaps not, but sin is sin regardless of the degree.
Who then can be saved? If left up to us alone, no one! 1John 1:8-10; Luke 24:44-49
Why is being a good person not enough to get you into heaven?
Fair Question! Many people believe that is the way to Heaven.
Because no one is a “good” person; there is only One who is good, and that is God Himself. No one can keep the Law perfectly. The Bible says that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God Romans 3:23. The Bible also says that the wages of our sin is death Romans 6:23a.
Sin Enters the World - God the Conductor/Creator is deposed!
In the very first book of the Bible, the book of Genesis, chapter 3, we learn that sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden. The first created humans, Adam and Eve, chose to disobey God and the whole human race was affected by their disobedience. All of us have inherited the sin nature and death came because of sin. Romans 5:12
The message of the gospel is that Jesus loves us and died to pay for our sin. John 3:16 Why? Because we can never be good enough through our own effort to get to heaven. We must recognize that we are sinners who fall short of God’s glory, and we must acknowledge the need to repent of our sins and place our faith and trust in Jesus Christ. Luke 5:32 1 John 1:8-10
God, our Creator/Conductor Shows His Great Love for Us!
Because we are all sinners we need a Savior. God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. Romans 5:8
We can be made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, We will certainly be saved from God’s judgement if we put our trust in Him and begin to follow Jesus.
Even when we were God’s enemies, he made peace with us, because his Son died for us. Yet something even greater than friendship is ours. Now that we are at peace with God, we will be saved by the life of his Son. 11 And in addition to everything else, we are happy because God sent our Lord Jesus Christ to make peace with us. Romans 5:10-11 CEV
Christ alone was a “good person”—good enough to earn heaven—and He gives His righteousness to those who believe in His name Romans 1:17
Salvation is based on Jesus’ goodness.
God wants to give you a new nature so that you can be in harmony with Him; He wants to be the Conductor of your life. He has had plans for your life since before you were born! Ephesians 2:10
If we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead, we will be saved Romans 10:9. This salvation in Christ is a precious gift, and, like all true gifts, it is unearned Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8–9.
Though our salvation is not dependent on our behavior, it is certain that our behavior, our goals and priorities will absolutely change as we begin to follow Jesus and that is what He calls us to do. In fact, the Bible describes the fruit of a life that is committed to following him in this verse Galatians 5:23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Isn’t it time to give your life to Christ and begin to live the life He planned for you? Life is very short! James 4:14
If you hear His voice speaking to your heart today, don’t delay- respond. Hebrews 3:15
Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. Revelation 3:20
Take just a few minutes to watch and listen to this song: Jesus at the Door| Who is Gently Knocking at your Heart?
